Spending rose 0.1 per cent in August, fresh Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures show. This follows a 0.4 per cent rise in July and 0.5 per cent lift in June. Oxford Economics head of economic research and global trade Harry Murphy Cruise said a jump in household spending would reduce the likelihood of further interest-rate cuts. “On Tuesday, the RBA flagged their concern that household spending was picking up faster than expected,” he said. Deloitte Access Economics partner Stephen Smith said prior to Thursday’s data being released that interest-rate cuts had been pivotal to lifting household spending.